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BANCROFT 
LIBRARY 

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THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 


THE 


OP 


an    Jrrancisca, 


OF 


SPECIAL    COMMITTEE 


ON 


rJ/.  LAWRENCE  MERRY,  Chairman, 
C.  J.  DEMPSTER,  Secretary. 


SAX  FRANCISCO: 

DEMPSTER  BROS.,  PRI>TEUS,  No.  9  BOND  STREET. 
1880. 


THE 

BOARD    OF    TRADE 

OF  SAN  FRANCISCO, 

1880. 


J.  S.  TABER,     PRESIDENT. 
JAMES  DUFFY,   1st  Vice-President. 


&4 

'      -, 

SPECIAL  COMMITTEE  ON  THE 

INTER-OCEANIC    CANAL. 


WM.  LAWRENCE  MERRY,  of  Merry,  Faull  &  Co., 

Chairman. 

C.  J.  DEMPSTER,  of  Dempster  &  Keys, 

Secretary. 

W.  W.  DODGE,  of  W.  W.  Dodge  &  Co. 

Louis  SACHS,  of  L.  &  M.  Sachs  &  Co. 

LEVI  STRAUSS,  -        of  Levi  Strauss  &  Co. 


PREFACE. 


At  the  Annual  meeting  of  The  Board  of 
Trade  of  San  Francisco  held  on  the  2d  of  Feb- 
ruary 1880,  President  J.  S.  Taber  made  the  fol- 
lowing remarks  : 

"This  brings  to  mind  another  important  question  of 
transportation  involved  in  the  idea  of  an  inter-oceanic  canal, 
connecting  the  Pacific  and  Atlantic  oceans,  which  is  now 
receiving  so  much  attention  from  eminent  engineers  in 
various  parts  of  the  world  and  from  our  own  government, 
which  has  already  expended  a  large  amount  of  money  in 
surveys.  Its  special  interest  to  San  Francisco,  and  whether 
across  the  Isthmus  of  Panama  or  Nicaragua,  seem  to  be 
proper  subjects  for  our  consideration.  Its  importance  to 
this  coast  will  be  a  matter  of  the  near  future,  and  it  might 
be  studied  up  with  much  profit.  A  committee  for  this  pur- 
pose would  find  much  interesting  data  to  present,  and  I 
trust  it  will  receive  your  earnest  enquiry,  and  a  committee 
be  chosen." 

In  accordance  with  which  suggestion  Captain 
W.  L.  MERRY  offered  the  following  resolution: 

Resolved,  That  a  committee  of  five  members  of  this  Board 
be  appointed  by  the  Chair  to  consider  the  question  of  an 
inter-oceanic  canal  in  its  bearings  on  the  Pacific  coast,  and 
to  investigate,  from  a  commercial  standpoint,  which  project- 
ed route  should  meet  the  approval  of  San  Francisco  mer- 
chants; said  committee  to  report  to  the  Board  at  a  special 
meeting  to  be  called  for  that  purpose. 


4  PREFACE. 

In  support  of  his  resolution,  he  spoke  as 
follows : 

I  am  pleased  to  act  on  the  suggestion  of  our  President 
that  the  subject  of  an  inter-oceanic  canal  be  taken  up  by 
the  Board  as  a  matter  of  paramount  interest  to  the  pros- 
perity of  our  State  and  the  Pacific  Coast.  This  Board, 
representing  millions  paid  annually  for  freights,  and  in- 
timately connected  with  the  commercial  prosperity  of  this 
Commonwealth,  will  do  itself  honor  by  placing  itself  on 
record  in  favor  of  this  great  work.  California,  more  than 
any  other  State  in  our  country,  and  San  Francisco  more  than 
any  other  city  in  the  world,  should  do  all  they  can  to  aid  in 
this  great  enterprise.  The  day  on  which  we  can  land  the 
varied  products  of  our  soil  at  European  ports  in  thirty  days, 
and  on  our  own  Eastern  seaboard  in  eighteen  days,  without 
breaking  bulk,  and  at  reasonable  freights,  will  witness  an 
immense  advance  in  the  prosperity  of  our  Pacific  States. 

This  association  of  merchants  will  fall  short  of  its  duty 
if  it  fails  to  assist  this  great  work  by  its  influence  and  en- 
couragement. True,  there  may  be  no  immediate  profit  re- 
sulting to  us,  but  in  the  life  of  a  commercial  community,  the 
few  years  necessary  to  construct  this  great  highway  will  be 
a  short  period.  Many  of  the  gentlemen  now  present  will 
live  to  see  this  great  work  completed,  and  recall  with  pride 
their  approval  of  its  inception.  Our  Government  has  already 
expended  a  large  amount  on  surveys  for  this  purpose,  and 
at  the  proper  time,  I  shall  appreciate  the  privilege  of  calling 
the  attention  of  the  Committee  to  the  results  of  the  prelim- 
inary work  already  accomplished. 

The  resolution  was  carried,  and  Captain  W. 
L.  MERRY,  W.  W.  DODGE,  C.  J.  DEMPSTER,  LEVI 
STRAUSS  and  Louis  SACHS  appointed  as  the  Com- 
mittee ordered. 


COMMITTEE    REPORT. 


SAN  FRANCISCO,  April  7th,  1880. 

Mr.    President   and    Gentlemen  of  the   Board  of 
Trade   of  San  Francisco  : 

Your  Special  Committee  on  the  Inter-Oceanic 
Canal,  appointed  at  your  Annual  meeting  on 
February  2nd,  1880,  have,  since  that  date,  heard 
all  the  oral  testimony  obtainable  on  this  Coast, 
and  examined  all  the  official  surveys  of  our  Gov- 
ernment appertaining  to  the  subject,  as  well  as  the 
journals  of  the  Inter-oceanic  Canal  Convention 
held  at  Paris  in  1879.  We  have  considered  the 
matter  from  an  impartial  standpoint.  We  are 
deeply  impressed  by  its  great  importance  to  the 
material  interests  of  our  Country  and  especially 
to  the  Pacific  Coast,  and  we  have  publicly  invited 
a  free  expression  of  opinion  on  the  part  of  all 
concerned.  Our  conclusion,  reached  after  much 
thought  and  mature  consideration,  is  that  the  pro- 
jected Inter-Oceanic  Canal  via  Nicaragua,  as  sur- 
veyed ~by  the,  United  States  Naval  Expedition  of 
1873  should  receive  our  decided  preference,  for  the 
reasons  stated  herewith: 


6  COMMITTEE  REPORT. 

A.  The  Nicaragua  Inter-Oceanic  Canal  can 
be  constructed  at  a  cost  which  can  be  safely  esti- 
mated as  less  than  one-half  that  of  the  Low-Tide 
Level  Canal  via  Panama,  and  is  commercially  prac- 
ticable and  available. 

B.  Its  location  is  greatly  preferable  on  ac- 
count of  its  adaptability  to  the  use  of  vessels  un- 
der  canvass,  (or  using  canvass  as  an   auxiliary,) 
while  it  can  be  made  equally  practicable  for   the 
use  of  steamships  of  the  largest  tonnage. 

C.  It  passes  through  a  Country  rich  in  re- 
sources,   with  two  magnificent  Lakes  rendering 
the    work    accessible    to  a    large  territory,    the 
commerce   of  which   will  greatly  assist   in  pay- 
ing the  cost  of  maintaining  the  Canal  after  this 
region  shall  have  received  the  development  which 
must  ensue  from  its  construction. 

D.  The  most  competent   Engineers  in  our 
country  assert,  and  the  careful  surveys  ordered  by 
our  Government  prove,  that  the  projected  Nicara- 
gua   Inter-oceanic    Canal   offers    no  engineering 
problems  which   are  not   comparatively  easy   of 
solution  at  an  expense  within  the  limits  by  us 
assigned,  and,  as  it  can  be  demonstrated  that  it 
will  be  a  paying  investment,  capitalists  will  not 
hesitate  to  furnish  funds  for  its  construction. 


COMMITTEE  REPORT.  7 

For  more  detailed  information  as  to  the 
points  herein  considered,  we  present  the  Mem- 
orandum appended  hereto,  to  which  we  crave  ref- 
erence. 


WM.  LAWRENCE  MERRY,  Chairman. 
C.  J.  DEMPSTER,  Sect'y. 
LEVI  STRAUSS, 
W.  W.  DODGE, 
Louis  SACHS. 


MEMORANDUM. 


EXHIBIT  A. 

Cost  of  Construction.  We  have  paid  particu- 
lar attention  to  this  vital  question.  We  find  the 
Nicaragua  Survey  by  Commander  Lull,  U.  S. 
Navy  worthy  of  implicit  confidence.  Every  foot 
of  ground  has  been  carefully  and  laboriously  sur- 
veyed with  instruments  of  precision,  and  a  detail- 
ed estimate  made  of  the  cost  of  each  division,  the 
whole  amounting  to  $52,577,718,  to  which,  adding 
25  per  cent  for  contingencies  we  have  $65,722,147. 
Desiring  to  make  a  conservative  estimate,  and 
inclined  to  allow  the  widest  limit  for  error,  as  well 
as  for  the  increased  dimension  of  locks  hereafter 
to  be  specified,  we  admit  &  possible  cost  of  $100,- 
000,000  or  nearly  double  the  original  estimate. 

We  do  not  intend  to  question  the  accuracy 
of  our  official  surveys  by  adopting  nearly  double 
the  net  estimate  as  our  view  of  the  possible  cost. 
On  the  contrary  the  surveys  have  evidently  been 
carefully  and  conscientiously  made;  probably  as 
much  so  as  if  made  for  a  contract.  In  fact,  we 
have  it  in  evidence,  that  Chief  Engineer  Menocal, 
who  made  these  estimates,  has  subsequently  done 
subaqueous  blasting  in  the  San  Juan  River,  at  a 
cost  of  $2.50  per  cubic  yard  for  which  he  had  al- 


COST  OF   CONSTRUCTION.  9 

lowed  $5.00  per  cubic  yard  in  the  Government 
Report.  But  we  are  estimating  on  a  Commercial 
basis,  and,  having  in  view  the  increased  size  of 
locks  recommended,  and  the  apparently  inevitable 
financial  result,  in  respect  to  the  cost  of  all  works 
of  this  character  heretofore  completed,  we  must 
conclude  from  a  cautious  mercantile  standpoint, 
that  one  hundred  millions  is  not  too  high  an  esti- 
mate of  possible  cost.  It  is  also  proper  to  state 
that  the  same  remarks  as  to  cost  apply  with 
greater  force  to  the  Panama  Low  Tide  Level  Canal. 
The  estimate  for  the  Panama  Low  Tide  Level 
Canal  has  been  publicly  announced  at  843, 000, 000 
francs  (approximately  $169,000,000,)  this  includ- 
ing a  contingency  estimate  of  a  little  less  than  ten 
per  cent.  European  and  American  engineers  of  the 
highest  standing  acknowledge  that  the  peculiar 
features  inevitable  in  excavation  below  the  sea 
level  prevent  any  accurate  calculation  of  the  out- 
lay which  may  prove  necessary.  Considering  the 
Engineering  problems  so  difficult  of  solution  on  the 
Panama  Low  Tide  Level  Canal,  notably  the  diver- 
sion of  the  Chagres  where  the  Canal  crosses  it  68 
feet  below  its  present  bed,  and  the  construction  of  an 
artificial  Lake  to  hold  its  immense  flood  waters, 
and  admitting  the  same  limit  of  error  as  in 
the  Nicaragua  Survey,  we  have  a  total  cost 
so  enormous  that  it  cannot  be  considered  commer- 
cially practicable.  Indeed  we  confidently  assert 
that  an  estimate  of  $300,000,000  which  is  as  low 


10  COST  OF   CONSTRUCTION. 

as  a  conservative  judgment  will  accept,  cannot  be 
considered  commercially  practicable. 

Excessive   as  this  estimate  of  possible  cost 
may  appear  to  the  advocates  of  the  Panama  Canal 
it  will  be  noted  that  the  ratio  of  increase  is  less 
than  we  have  applied  to  the  Nicaragua  Survey \ 
which  has  to  deal  with  problems  less  difficult  of 
solution.     Considering  that  the  estimate  of  cost 
fixed  by  the  Technical  Commission  at  Panama 
does  not  include  interest  during  the  period  of  con- 
struction, payment  to  the  Panama  Railroad,  or 
to  Lieut.  Wyse  for  the  Concession,  we  must  re- 
gard  the  ten  per  cent  allowed  for  contingencies- 
as  totally  inadequate.     It  appears  to  us  that  the 
contingency   estimate  for   building    the   Panama. 
Canal  below  the  sea  level  should  be  greater  than 
in  estimating  for  the  Nicaragua  Canal  above  the 
sea  level,  whereas  it  is  estimated  at  fifteen  per 
cent  less.     The  cost  of  these  works  being  essen- 
tially a  technical  question  we  approach  the  sub- 
ject with  much  deference,  and  only  because  we 
are  obliged  to  do  so  in  order  to  settle  the  Com- 
mercial  practicability  which  must  be    controlled 
thereby.     We  also  note  that  Works  of  this  charac- 
ter have  seldom  been  constructed  within  estimates, 
contingencies  included,  while  the  cost  has  frequent- 
ly been  doubled.     The  Suez  Canal  estimated  at 
forty  million  dollars  cost  ninety -one  and  a  half  mil- 
lions.    We  also  refer  to  the  Croton  Water  Works 
as  another  instance  of  the  inaccuracy  of  original 


DRAINAGE.  11 

estimates  on.  projects  of  this  character.  For  the 
demonstration  of  this  question  in  detail  we  beg 
reference  to  Exhibit  D. 

In  this  connection  we  may  be  allowed  to 
quote  the  remarks  of  Commander  Lull,  U.  S. 
Navy  in  his  report  of  the  U.  S.  Survey  of  the 
Panama  Canal,  1875,  page  24.  They  appear  to 
us  important  and  will  be  specially  approved  of  by 
many  old  Californians  who  "know  how  Jloods  be- 
have" in  the  rainy  season. 

"One  of  the  most  vitally  important  questions 
to  be  considered  in  discussing  the  subject  of  the 
construction  of  a  canal  across  the  American' Isth- 
mus is  that  of  drainage;  and,  singularly  enough, 
among  European  writers  on  the  subject,  scarcely 
any  attention  has  been  given  to  it.  Taking  the 
Suez  Canal  as  a  standard  for  comparison,  they 
almost  without  exception  cling  to  the  idea  of  a 
canal  without  locks ;  in  other  words,  a  cut  below 
the  level  of  the  sea.  Such  a  channel  would  be 
burdened,  not  only  with  the  discharge  of  the 
springs  developed  in  the  cut,  and  whose  number 
and  force  in  a  land  so  saturated  with  moisture 
would  be  beyond  comparison  with  those  of  any 
hitherto-constructed  work,  but  must  also  become 
the  ultimate  drain  of  the  surface  of  a  very  consid- 
able  portion  of  adjacent  territory.  It  would, 
during  the  rainy  season,  if  not  indeed  at  all  times, 
be  a  wild  torrent,  unfit  for  the  passage  of  ships, 
and  must  speedily  become  filled  with  bars  and 


12  ADVANTAGES  OF  LOCATION. 

other  obstructions  from  the  detritus  furnished  by 
its  own  current." 

EXHIBIT  B. 

Location.  The  location  of  this  great  work  is 
a  factor  of  vital  importance.  The  Nicaragua 
Canal  would  be  entitled  to  the  preference  of 
Americans  because  it  would  save  about  eight  hun- 
dred miles  on  both  oceans  between  our  Northwest 
Coast  and  our  Eastern  Seaboard  and  Europe.  But 
we  are  considering  a  Canal  for  the  service  of  all 
the  Maritime  World,  and,  discarding  our  own 
preferences  as  Americans,  we  still  recognize  the 
Nicaragua  Canal  as  the  most  advantageously  situat- 
ed for  the  World's  Commerce.  In  the  use  of 
wind,  Nature  has  given  us  a  motive  power  too 
cheap  and  too  efficient  to  be  discarded.  Even  in 
screw  steamships  of  latest  construction  this  fact  is 
recognized;  all  using  it  as  a  valuable  auxiliary 
motive  power,  and  even  as  aiding  in  the  develop- 
ment of  steam  power  by  furnishing  efficient 
draught  for  furnaces.  For  hundreds  of  miles 

o 

oceanward  from  Panama  almost  unremitting 
calms  prevail.  Maury  has  written  that  were  an 
earthquake  to  sever  the  continent  at  the  Panama 
Isthmus,  sailing  ships  would  prefer  going  around 
the  "Cape  of  Storms"  to  essaying  a  passage 
through  the  Gulf  of  Panama.  It  is  a  notable  fact 
that  notwithstanding  the  development  of  steam 


ADVANTAGES  OF  LOCATION.  13 

power  which  has  increased  its  economy  fully  one- 
third,  sailing  ships  have  increased  in  still  greater 
ratio.  To  them  the  Panama  Canal  would  be 
practically  useless,  and  no  project  unadapted  to 
their  use  can  be  entertained  by  the  Commercial 
World,  which  requires  a  Canal  as  much  for  the 
ships  already  constructed  as  for  those  of  the 
future. 

The  Nicaragua  Canal  offers  no  such  disad- 

o 

vantage.  With  its  Pacific  terminus  almost  out 
of  the  region  of  tropical  calms,  it  is  accessible 
to  sailing  ships  with  comparatively  limited  delay, 
and  would  be  extensively  used  by  them.  Iron 
sailing  ships  in  passing  through  it  would  be  cleans- 
ed by  the  action  of  fresh  water,  thereby  increasing 
their  subsequent  speed,  and  steamships  would  leave 
it  with  boilers  filled  with  fresh  water  without  cost 
or  detention.  , 

EXHIBIT  C. 

Local  Resources.  The  importance  of  this  branch 
of  the  subject  cannot  be  over  estimated.  The  Pana- 
ma Isthmus  can  have  comparatively  no  resources. 
Even  the  material  for  construction  is  mostly  lacking. 
Nicaragua  is  a  country  of  great  resources,  and  con- 
tains within  its  borders  all  the  material  for  canal 
construction  except  iron,  for  which,  however,  no 
search  has  been  made.  Should  our  country  and 
Nicaragua  see  fit  to  make  a  Treaty  of  Reciprocity 


14  LOCAL  RESOURCES 

simultaneous  with  the  commencement  of  the  Canal, 
by  the  time  it  is  completed,  Nicaragua  would  her- 
self pay  a  large  portion  of  the  cost  of  mainten- 
ance, and,  in  any  event,  when  this  magnificent 
country,  becomes  connected, by  means  of  this  work, 
with  the  Commercial  World,  a  constantly  increasing 
local  commerce,  would  aid  in  making  the  project 
a  profitable  one.  Valuable  woods,  the  finest  cacao 
in  the  world,  coffee,  cotton,  cochineal,  indigo, 
sugar  and  India  rubber  are  among  its  native  pro- 
ducts— all  articles  that  ourselves  and  all  Europe 
need,  and  will  gladly  pay  for,  offering  us  in  return 
a  large  field  for  the  manufactured  products  of 
our  country.  Certainly  this  is  an  argument  of 
the  most  forcible  nature  in  the  consideration  of 
this  question.  If  the  Inter-oceanic  Canal  would 
be  an  advantage  to  Nicaragua,  Nicaragua  would 
even  be  more  of  an  advantage  to  the  capitalists 
investing  in  this  great  highway  of  Nations. 

EXHIBIT  D. 

Facility  of  Construction.  We  enter  upon  this 
branch  of  the  subject  with  some  diffidence,  be- 
cause we  are  not  engineers,  but  as  the  Projector 
of  the  Panama  Low  Tide  Level  Canal  publicly 
admitted  at  the  Paris  Canal  Convention  of  1879, 
that  he  is  not  himself  an  engineer,  we  approach 
the  discussion,  feeling  that,  after  using  our  best 
judgement,  we  can  rely  on  eminent  English  and 


FACILITY  OF  CONSTRUCTION.  15 

American  Engineers  who  have  publicly  and  official- 
ly endorsed  the  Nicaragua  Canal.  We  see  no  valid 
objection  to  the  use  of  locks,  since  they  are  already 
in  use  in  this  country  of  a  capacity  large  enough  for 
largest  class  ships.  We  have,  however  to  insist,  as  a 
necessity  of  the  case  that  the  locks  of  the  Nicaragua 
Canal  shall  be  lengthened  to  the  dimensions  of  that 
recently  built  by  G-en.  Weitzel,  of  the  U.  S.  Engin- 
eer Corps,  at  the  St.  Mary's  Canal;  515  feet  long, 
or  even  550  feet  long,  with  proportionate  width. 
Locks  of  the  length  required  by  our  recommenda- 
tion would  pass  a  large  portion  of  the  vessels  using 
the  Canal,  two  at  a  time,  thereby  economizing 
labor  and  increasing  its  capacity.  While  it  is 
is  true  that  the  locks  of  400  feet  length  estimated 
for, will  accommodate  most  ships  now  in  use, we  give 
due  weight  to  the  fact  that  the  largest  ships 
are  the  cheapest  freight  carriers,  and  we  would 
have  canal  locks  large  enough  for  all  that  are 
likely  to  be  built  hereafter.  The  increased  cost 
will  not  be  material,  and  the  advantage  will  be 
great.  The  liability  to  earthquakes  as  an  ob- 
jection to  the  use  of  locks  we  do  not  consider  im- 
portant, although  it  is  a  danger  both  at  Panama 
>and  Nicaragua;  so  remote  that  it  need  not  be 
considered  in  either  place. 

It  is  proposed  to  construct  the  Locks  of  the 
Nicaragua  Canal  with  concrete,  which  affords  great 
facility  for  repairs  and  for  which  the  best  materials 
abound  in  that  country.  Numerous  works  in 


16  FINANCIAL   RESULTS. 

Central  America  built  of  this  material  a  century 
or  more  ago  attest  its  durability.  The  Panama 
Canal  with  its  enormous  dam  to  control  the  floods 
of  the  Chagres,  and  its  tidal  lock  at  the  Pacific 
terminus  offers  objections  as  regards  earthquakes, 
equally  or  more  serious  than  the  locks  of  the  Nica- 
ragua Canal.  We  see  no  reason  why  the  philoso- 
phy that  Nature  teaches,  should  not  be  made  use 
of  to  conquer  the  obstacles  that  Nature  places  be- 
fore us,  and  we  claim  that  it  is  better  and  more 
reasonable,  to  carry  a  ship  over  a  summit  by  means 
of  lift  locks,  than  to  build  a  sea  level  cut  at 
an  incalculably  increased  cost,  which  must  necessa- 
rily receive  the  drainage  of  a  country  with  an 
average  precipitation  of  124  inches  annually. 

At  Aspinwall  the  rain  fall  in  1872  was  170^0 
inches. 

At  Suez  the  annual'  average  is  less  than  2 
inches. 

Dismissing   this  branch  of  the  Exhibit  we 
come  to  the  final  test  of  all  Commercial  Problems. 
Will  it  pay  ?     We  can  conscientiously  answer  with 
the  lights  before  us;     By  Nicaragua  it  will  pay— 
by  Panama  it  will  not  pay. 

Ten  years  since  the  estimated  tonnage  that  would 
use  the  American  Inter-oceanic  Canal  was  placed 
by  the  best  official  authority  in  the  country  at  4,100- 
000  tons  per  annum.  Careful  estimates  made  by 
your  Committee  place  it  at  5,250,000  tons  at  this 
time.  We  are  informed  by  Count  De  Lesseps 
that  he  calculates  upon  6,000,000  tons,  the 


FINANCIAL   RESULTS.  17 

difference  being  perhaps  caused  by  assigning  the 
use  of  the  Canal  to  ships  that  we  place  as  likely 
to  continue  on  previous  routes.  Thus,  the  English 
direct  commerce  with  Australia  would,  in  our 
opinion,  only  use  the  Canal  on  their  homeward 
voyage,  and  would  continue  to  go  from  England  to 
Australia  via  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope  or  via  Suez. 
The  De  Lesseps  estimate  of  6,000, 000  tons  appears 
the  more  excessive  when  it  is  considered  that  he 
claims  steam  as  the  exclusive  motive  power  by 
sea  hereafter,  discards  sailing  tonnage,  and  then 
includes  this  sailing  tonnage  in  his  estimate. 

Desiring,  as  we  have  done  in  all  our  conclu- 
sions, to  estimate  conservatively,  we  allow  for  a 
tonnage  of  5,000,000  tons  per  annum.  Five 
million  tons  annually  represents  about  2,780 
vessels  which  would  make  8  vessels  daily,  pass- 
ing through  the  Canal — four  each  way.  It  will 
be  readily  seen  that  the  capacity  of  the  Nica- 
ragua Canal  would  be  fully  four  times  the  esti- 
mated tonnage,  notwithstanding  the  use  of  locks. 
Admitting  the  cost  at  the  extreme  figure  of  $100,- 
000,000,  and  with  a  toll  of  $2.00  per  ton  we  have 
a  yearly  income  equal  to  10  per  cent,  on  the  cost. 
Allowing  the  very  liberal  estimate  of  $2,000,000 
per  annum  for  maintenance,  we  have  a  net  income 
equal  to  8  per  cent,  on  the  investment,  indepen- 
dent of  the  increasing  local  revenue,  as  the  interior 
of  Nicaragua  is  developed;  an  important  factor  in 
our  favor,  to  aid  which  we  would  include  in  the 


18  RECOMMENDATIONS. 

general  plan,  the  connecting  of  Lake  Managua 
with  Lake  Nicaragua  by  a  canal  of  10  feet  draught, 
which  could  'be  built  at  a  very  moderate  cost, 
Nature  having  already  done  a  considerable  part  of 
the  work. 

We  would  also  recommend  the  construc- 
tion of  a  Dry  Dock  in  Lake  Nicaragua,  con- 
tiguous to  the  Canal,  capable  of  admitting  the 
largest  ships  that  can  pass  through  it,  and  with 
Dockage  rates  publicly  fixed  at  as  low  figures  as 
possible.  This  would  encourage  ships  navigating 
toward  the  Canal  and  meeting  with  any  mishap, 
to  continue  on  their  voyage,  and  thereby  save  the 
great  expense  frequently  incurred  by  deviation. 
It  would  also  afford  facility  for  repairs  of  the  local 
tonnage  which  would  soon  navigate  Lakes  Mana- 
gua and  Nicaragua. 

Commerce  should  not  be  charged  over  $2.00 
per  ton  for  the  use  of  the  canal,  if  our  Coast 
is  to  reap  the  benefit  it  is  entitled  to  expect 
from  such  a  work,  and  this  is  the  maximum 
tonnage  charge  considered  advisable  by  experts 
who  have  been  examined  by  your  Committee. 
After  all,  the  insuperable  objection  to  the  Panama 
Low  Tide  Level  Canal  is  the  toll  necessary  to  pay 
for  its  construction  which  has  been  announced 
at  $3.00  per  ton,  while  De  Lesseps  publicly 
stated  at  the  Paris  Convention  of  1879  that 
he  could,  if  necessary,  make  ships  pay  20  francs 
per  ton,  which,  allowing  even  a  moderate  contin- 


RECAPITULATION.  19 

gency  in  his  estimates,  he  would  have  to  charge, 
to  declare  any  dividends. 

We  beg  to  call  your  attention  to  the  fol- 
lowing points  in  our  statement.  First,  we  ad- 
mit a  cost  nearly  double  the  net  estimate  made  by 
our  Government  Engineers  for  the  Nicaragua 
Canal.  Second,  we  reduce  the  probable  tonnage 
that  would  use  it  250,000  tons  below  our  own 
close  estimate,  and  1,000,000  tons  below  the  esti- 
mate lately  made  public  for  the  Panama  scheme. 
Third,  we  ignore  the  income  from  the  local  com- 
merce which  would  be  rapidly  developed.  Fourth, 
on  this  basis  we  show  8  per  cent,  profit  with  a  toll 
of  82.00  per  ton,  allowing  $2,000,000  per  annum 
for  maintenance.  We  respectfully  submit  that 
we  can  present  this  financial  problem  to  the  world 
with  prospects  of  success,  and  that  the  Nicaragua 
Inter-oceanic  Canal  will  pay. 


GENERAL   REMARKS. 

We  would  urge  the  absolute  necessity  of 
regulating  the  tonnage  tax  for  the  use  of  this 
Commercial  Highway  by  means  of  an  Inter- Na- 
tional Convention  in  which  all  the  maritime  nations 
of  Europe  and  America  shall  be  represented;  the 
tonnage  tax  thus  levied  being  unchangeable 
except  by  a  majority  of  all  the  Signatory  Powers, 
and  intended  to  pay  a  liberal  percentage  on  the 
absolute  cost  of  construction  only. 


20  TONNAGE  TAX. 

Inasmuch  as  Nicaragua  will  receive  substan- 
tial and  increasing  benefit  from  the  day  this  great 
enterprise  is  inaugurated,  it  being  in  effect,  an  ex- 
tensive system  of  internal  improvements  without 
expense  to  its  citizens,  we  do  not  consider  that  the 
Government  of  that  Republic  should  claim  any 
special  privileges  which  would  seriously  decrease 
the  revenues  of  the  Company  constructing  it,  but 
should  restrict  their  requirements  in  this  particu- 
lar to  the  free  use  of  the  Canal  for  their  Naval 
vessels,  a  reduction  of  25  per  cent  on  tolls  payable 
by  the  Internal  Commerce  of  the  Republic,  and 
the  use  of  the  Panaloya  Canal,  connecting  Lake 
Nicaragua  with  Lake  Managua,  at  a  toll  which 
will  only  pay  the  cost  of  maintenance. 

We  cannot  too  strongly  commend  to  the  at- 
tention of  this  Board  the  importance  of  the  fore- 
going suggestions. 

Ten  different  routes  have  been  examined  by 
able,  disinterested  and  skillful  officers  in  the  ser- 
vice of  our  Government,  and  where  they  have 
been  found  practicable,  close  instrumental  surveys 
have  followed:  the  last  of  these  being  the  Lull 
Survey  for  the  Panama  Canal  in  1875.  The  re- 
sult of  all  these  laborious  examinations,  is  the 
officially  expressed  preference  given  by  the  best 
engineering  talent  in  the  United  States  to  the 
Nicaragua  Route.  The  Commercial  World  is 
ripe  for  the  execution  of  this  great  and  beneficent 
work,  and  having  every  indication  of  pecuniary 
success,  abundant  capital,  under  proper  guarantees, 


PROMPT  ACTION  NECESSARY.  21 

will  be  forthcoming.  Your  Committee  do  not 
sympathise  with  those  who  would  place  impedi- 
ments in  the  path  of  the  illustrious  Projector  of 
the  Panama  Canal.  Although,  as  far  as  they  are 
able  to  judge,  a  work  of  stupendous  magnitude, 
if  the  capitalists  of  Europe  choose  to  place  their 
means  at  his  disposition  for  this  purpose,  we  should 
wish  him  success,  and  we  cannot  but  honor  his 
energy  and  his  confidence.  If  the  spirit  of 
American  enterprise  no  longer  finds  exponents  in 
the  construction  of  what  we  conscientiously  re- 
commend as  being,  in  our  judgement,  a  better 
route,  we  have  no  moral  right  to  prevent  others, 
with  more  energy,  from  undertaking  so  beneficent 
an  enterprise,  and,  if  the  Panama  Canal  costs,  as 
we  think  it  will,  far  more  than  at  present  estimat- 
ed, once  it  is  constructed,  it  cannot  lay  idle,  and 
a  tonnage  charge  must  be  made  which  ships  can  pay, 
even  if  it  prove  unremunerative  to  the  investors. 
The  same  energy  which  Count  De  Lesseps  dis- 
plays, would  probably,  if  applied  to  the  Nicara- 
gua Canal,  result  in  its  completion  within  five 
years,  and,  we  are  confident,  at  about  one  third  the 
cost.  It  would  be  a  source  of  lasting  regret  how- 
ever, if  the  commencement  of  the  Panama  Canal 
should  prevent  the  construction  of  that  in  Nicara- 
gua, and,  in  the  event  of  the  abandonment  of  the 
former,  indefinitely  deprive  the  Commercial  World 
of  any  Canal  whatever.  Both  routes  have  now 
been  surveyed  with  instruments  of  precision. 


22  RESULTS. 

The  time  for  action  has  arrived. 

Our  Commonwealth,  our  Pacific  Coast,  de- 
mand cheap  transportation;  both  languish  on  their 
onward  march  for  the  want  of  it.  During  the  year 
which  sees  our  first  grain  laden  ship  leave  our 
wharves  for  Europe  via  the  Nicaragua  Canal,  the 
Farmer  will  find  every  acre  that  he  tills  largely 
enhanced  in  value;  the  Merchant  will  find  himself 
two  months  nearer  the  great  marts  of  Europe. 
European  immigrants  can  reach  us  in  less  than  30 
days  time  at  a  cost  of  about  $35  and  our  material 
prosperity  will  receive  such  an  impetus  as  we  little 
dream  of. 

Let  us  not  then  dismiss  this  subject  as  an 
Utopian  dream.  Had  the  Gentlemen  present 
examined  it  as  have  your  Committee,  you  would 
no  longer  ask  cui-bonof  To  the  end  that  the  labors 
of  your  Committee  shall  bear  the  fruit  they  should 
do,  we  have  prepared  a  Memorial  to  Congress,  now 
in  session,  urging  them  to  place  our  State  on  record 
as  crying  aloud  for  this  great  work.  Gentlemen, 
there  is  honor  to  this  Board  of  Trade  in  the  per- 
sistent urging  of  the  construction  of  the  Nicaragua 
Inter-oceanic  Canal — there  is  prosperity  in  it  for 
our  Producers;  there  is  profit  in  it  for  our  Mer- 
chants! God  speed  the  day  when  the  Pacific  shall 
be  wedded  to  the  Atlantic  !  It  will  be  a  happy  day 
for  us,  for  our  children,  for  our  Country,  and  for 
the  World  ! 

In  conclusion  your  Committee  ha^e  to  thank 


CONCLUSION.  23 

Senator  Booth  for  valuable  documents.  Also  to 
Count  De  Lesseps  and  Lieutenant  Leutze,  U.  S. 
Navy  for  giving  us  their  time  and  experience  in 
the  surveys  under  discussion,  and  the  many  gentle- 
men experts  whom  we  have  called  upon  for  evi- 
dence in  Committee.  The  subject  has  occupied 
much  of  our  time  and  thoughts  and  its  interest 
has  so  grown  upon  us  that  we  could  wish  every 
merchant  in  this  Board  would  inform  himself  fully 
on  a  matter  of  such  vital  interest  to  our  country 
and  the  commercial  w^orld. 

The  documents  appertaining  thereto  are  now  in 
the  Library  of  the  Board,  and  to  them  we  invite 
the  attention  of  all  our  Members. 


DESCRIPTION  OF  ROUTE. 


Capt.  Merry,  Chairman  of  the  Committee, 
made  the  following  remarks  on  a  motion  to  adopt 
the  foregoing  report: 

Mr.   President  and  Gentlemen  of  the  Board  of 
Trade: 

The  importance  of  the  Inter-oceanic  Canal  as  a  factor 
in  the  prosperity  of  this  Commonwealth  demands  at  our 
hands  a  rigid  and  impartial  investigation  of  the  merits  of  the 
route  we  have  decided  as  alone  commercially  practicable. 
Certainly  a  canal  without  locks  and  on  sea  level  is  a  great 
desideratum,  but  when  we  cannot  attain  this  end  in  a  com- 
mercially practicable  manner,  it  appears  proper  to  avail  our- 
selves of  the  resources  of  Philosophy  and  Science  to  over- 
come the  obstacles  that  Nature  has  placed  in  our  path. 

What  portion  of  this  great  work  Nature  has  already  ac- 
complished in  Nicaragua  is  illustrated  by  the  fact  that, 
during  the  rainy  season  a  steamer  of  400  tons  can  enter  the 
San  Juan  river  at  its  Colorado  branch  and  approach  within 
12^-  miles  of  the  Pacific.  While  standing  on  the  upper 
deck  of  a  steamer  on  Lake  Nicaragua  I  have  seen  the  set- 
ting sun  almost  until  it  dipped  into  Pacific  waters. 

The  restoration  of  the  Harbor  of  Grey  town  is  probably 
the  most  difficult  task  in  the  construction  of  the  Nicaragua 
Canal,  but  with  the  amount  appropriated  therefor  and  the 
contingency  estimate  added  thereto,  it  can  doubtless  be  ac- 
complished. 


DESCRIPTION   OF   ROUTE.  25 

The  construction  of  the  canal  through  the  alluvial  delta 
of  the  San  Juan  River  offers  no  Engineering  difficulties  of 
note.  After  passing  this  delta,  in  following  the  river  valley 
to  the  junction  of  the  San  Carlos  River  some  heavier  cut- 
ting must  be  done,  but  no  engineering  obstacles  of  import- 
ance present  themselves.  From  the  junction  of  the  San 
Carlos  the  river  is  itself  converted  into  a  slack  water  navi- 
gation by  the  construction  of  four  dams,  after  the  river 
bottom  has  been  improved  and  deepened  where  necessary. 
These  dams  are  passed  by  three  short  canals  fitted  with  a 
lift  lock  in  each.  The  upper  portion  of  the  San  Juan  River 
has  only  8  inches  fall  to  the  mile,  and  is  essentially  a  natural 
canal  above  Castillo  Rapids,  to  the  Lake. 

The  navigation  of  the  Lake  offers  no  special  peculiari- 
ties, but  is  free  from  hidden  dangers,  and  deeper  than  is 
necessary  except  near  the  mouth  of  the  river,  where  it  has 
been  shoaled  by  silt  for  about  seven  miles,  an  average  of 
8  feet,  which  can  easily  be  removed  by  dredging.  The 
general  depth  of  the  Lake  is  5  to  16  fathoms,  averaging 
about  9  fathoms  on  the  line  of  the  Canal  Lake  Navigation. 

We  have  now  arrived  at  the  cut  from  the  mouth  of  the 
little  Rio  del  Medio,  on  the  lake,  to  Brito  on  the  Pacific,  a 
distance  of  16^  miles,  with  the  maximum  elevation  of  134 
feet  above  the  Lake  (a  sharp  peak)  and  an  average  cut  of 
about  40  feet  through  a  fixed  soil  and  occasional  rock,  but  all 
covered  with  vegetation.  The  Lake  being  107£  feet  above 
the  Pacific,  10  lift  locks  of  lOf  feet  each  are  constructed,  by 
which  means  the  ship  reaches  the  harbor  of  Brito  on  the 
Pacific.  Here  we  have  to  increase  the  limited  area  of  the 
harbor  and  fully  protect  it  by  a  breakwater  which  will 
afford  access  to  the  Canal  in  smooth  water.  The  appropria- 
tion for  this  purpose  appears  reasonable,  but  may  need  all 
the  margin  allowed  to  complete  the  work.  These  are  the 
main  features  of  the  Nicaragua  Canal  and  they  offer  no  ob- 
stacles that  cannot  be  overcome  with  comparative  ease,  in 
fact,  as  Lieut.  Leutze  has  j  ustly  observed,  "nothing  is  called 
for  here  that  has  not  been  done  before." 


26  OUR  SPECIAL  DUTY. 

Even  the  Nicaragua  Ship  Canal  is  doubtless  a  work  of 
great  magnitude,  but  it  should  be  measured  by  the  results 
it  will  produce.  Dynamite  and  Dredging  Machinery  are 
also  powerful  agents,  and  American  genius  will  furnish 
means  to  greatly  reduce  the  manual  labor  otherwise  neces- 
sary in  such  a  work. 

Let  us  now  inquire  why  we  should  agitate  this  subject 
at  all.  This  is  a  young  Mercantile  Community,  and  many 
here  present  will  live  to  see  the  completion  of  this  great 
work  !  The  day  when  we  can  reach  European  Ports  in  25 
days  and  our  Eastern  Seaboard  in  15  days,  without  break- 
ing bulk,  and  at  rates  of  freight  as  low  as  they  now  average 
to  Hong  Kong  will  witness  an  enormous  impetus  to  our  pros- 
perity. It  is  plainly  our  duty  as  a  Mercantile  Association, 
representing  the  business  interests  of  this  Coast  to  do  what 
lays  in  our  power  to  encourage  the  prosecution  of  this  great 
work  !  We  shall  do  ourselves  honor  and  our  State  ser- 
vice if  we  awake  to  the  great  advantages  which  are  being 
placed  within  our  grasp.  Few  such  opportunities  occur  in 
the  Mercantile  experience  of  a  life  time.  California  beyond 
any  state  in  the  Union,  and  San  Francisco  beyond  any  city 
in  the  world  should  urge  the  commencement  of  this  benefi- 
cent enterprise,  and,  as  a  representative  mercantile  body 
we  should  not  wait  until  other  kindred  associations  declare 
themselves.  We  are  the  most  interested,  why  should  we 
not  be  the  most  active  in  urging  the  attention  of  our  Govern- 
ment and  the  Commercial  World  to  this  project,  so  rich  in 
results  to  our  Commonwealth,  the  Pacific  Coast  and  our 
Country  ? 


TO    THE 
CALIFORNIA    DELEGATION 

IN      THE 

rff 


The  Board  of  Trade  of  San  Francisco  beg  re- 
spectfully to  call  your  attention  to  the  Memorial 
which  we  have  prepared  for  presentation  to  the 
Honorable  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives 
on  the  subject  of  the  Nicaragua  Inter-oceanic 
Canal  bespeaking  therefor  your  cordial  sympa- 
thy and  active  support.  The  Board  feel  assured 
of  your  interest  in  attaining  a  result  so  beneficent 
to  all  your  constituents,  and  that,  when  the  proper 
time  arrives,  your  great  influence  will  be  found 
urging  a  work  so  essential  to  the  prosperity  of 
the  producers  as  well  as  the  merchants  of  our 
Commonwealth  and  the  entire  Pacific  Coast.  , 

With  the  assurance  of  our  high  esteem,  we  sub- 
scribe ourselves, 

Your  Fellow  Citizens 
THE  BOARD  OF  TRADE  OF  SAN  FRANCISCO. 
by  J.  S.  Taber,  President. 

James  Duffy,  1st  Vice-President. 

C.  F.  Wyman,  Secretary. 

f      WM.  LAWRENCE  MERKY,  Chairman 
Committee,  a  j    DEMPSTER,  Secretary. 


Inter-oceanic  W'  W' 

Canal.  LEVI  STRAUSS, 

Louis  SACHS 


MEMORIAL. 

TO    THE    HONORABLE 

©he  j&watc  ami    um0e  of 


IN  CONGRESS  ASSEMBLED: 

The  Board  of  Trade  of  San  Francisco  represent- 
ing over  fifty  millions  of  active  capital  controlled 
by  two  hundred  and  twenty  -four  business  firms, 
respectfully  call  your  attention  to  the  great  and 
urgent  necessity  existing  for  the  construction  of  a 
Ship  Canal  to  connect  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific 
oceans.  Your  Memorialists  have  attentively  con- 
sidered this  great  question  in  the  interests  of  our 
Commonwealth,  our  Pacific  Coast  and  the  whole 
Commercial  World.  They  have  availed  themselves 
of  all  the  official  information  obtainable  on  the  sub- 
ject; they  have  examined  professional  experts  on 
the  surveys  already  made,  as  well  as  competent 
navigators  respecting  the  practical  benefits  attaina- 
ble thereby.  After  impartial  and  careful  considera- 


MEMORIAL.  29 

tion  of  the  subject,  and  without  any  interests  except 
as  above  stated,  your  Memorialists  desire  as  a  com- 
mercial body,  deeply  interested  in  the  practical  so- 
lution of  this  great  enterprise,  to  place  on  record 
their  firm  conviction  that,  in  point  of  Economy  of 
Construction,  availability  for  Commercial  purposes 
and  certainty  of  returns  for  the  capital  invested,  ttie 
Nicaragua  Route  for  an  Inter-oceanic  Canal  as 
surveyed  by  Commander  Lull,  U.  S.  Navy,  in 
1873  offers  the  greatest  advantages,  and  should 
therefore  receive  the  unqualified  endorsement  of 
our  Government  and  the  Capitalists  of  the  world. 

Our  Pacific  Coast  suffers,  and  is  retarded  in 
its  onward  march  of  Industrial  and  Commercial 
development,  for  the  want  of  cheap  transportation, 
and  your  Memorialists  look  upon  the  Nicaragua 
Inter-oceanic  Canal  as  the  only  available  project 
which  holds  out  to  our  producers  and  our  merchants 
the  prospect  of  permanent  relief — in  the  desid- 
eratum of  cheap  freights  to  the  Great  Nations 
inhabiting  the  shores  of  the  Atlantic.  The  mil- 
lions of  Europe  and  our  own  Countrymen  on  our 
Eastern  seaboard  want  the  varied  products  of  our 
soil,  but  we  are  debarred  from  the  benefit  which 
should  thereby  accrue  to  our  Pacific  Coast  by  the 
expanse  of  a  continent  and  by  the  "Cape  of 
Storms." 

Your  Memorialists  therefore  pray  that,  when 
an  organization  with  proper  guarantees,  applies  to 
you  for  recognition  and  official  encouragement,  the 


30  MEMORIAL. 

Government  of  our  country  will  assume  the  pro- 
tection, and  support  with  its  moral  influence,  the 
execution  of  this  great  work,  upon  which  so  much 
depends.  Your  sanction  and  your  encouragement 
will  make  this  essentially  an  American  enterprise, 
and  afford  such  a  guarantee  of  success  as  will  at- 
tract the  capital  of  Europe  to  complement  our 
own.  Our  Coast,  our  Country  and  the  World  are 
ready  for  this  great  and  beneficent  enterprise. 
On  the  shores  of  the  Pacific  the  sentiment  of 
American  Nationality  and  Patriotism  appeals  to 
you  with  the  assurance  of  your  cordial  sympathy 
and  support. 

THE  BOARD  OF  TRADE  OF  SAN  FRANCISCO. 
by  J.  S.  Taber,  President. 

James  Duffy,  1st  Vice-President 

C.  F.  Wyman,  Secretary. 


Committee. 

on 

Inter-oceanic 
Canal. 


WM.  LAWRENCE  MERRY,  Chairman 
C.  J.  DEMPSTER,  Secretary, 
W.  W.  DODGE, 
LEVI    STRAUSS, 
Louis  SACHS. 


DISTANCES.  31 

NICARAGUA  INTER-OCEANIC  CANAL. 

DISTANCES  ON  THE  LINE. 

Miles. 

Canal  between  Lake  Nicaragua  and  Brito, 

on  Pacific  Ocean,  16?? 

Canal  between  Lake  Nicaragua  and  Grey- 
town  on  Atlantic  Ocean,  4511 

Slack  water  Navigation  River  San  Juan,  63? 

Lake  Nicaragua  Navigation,  56' 


?00 


Total  Length,  180.76 


DISTANCES  SAVED  IN  NAVIGATION 

BY 
NICARAGUA     INTER-OCEANIC     CANAL. 

Miles. 

New  York  to  San  Francisco,  9800 

England  (Lizard)  to  San  Francisco,  6953 

New  York  to  Callao,  Peru,  6220 

"  Valparaiso,  Chile,  3720 

"•Hong  Kong,  China,  8245 

"  Yokohama,  Japan,  7905 

"  Melbourne,  Australia,  3120 

Liverpool  to  Gulf  of  Fonseca,  C.  A.  6500 

"  Callao,  Peru,  3200 

"  Valparaiso,  Chile,  1500 


32  COMPARISON  OF  ROUTES. 

NICARAGUA. 


1.  Longer  Canal  and  lift  locks  to  attain  lake 
level  of  107f  feet. 

2.  About  half  cost  of  Panama. 

3.  Passes  through   a    country   of  great  but 
only  slightly  developed  resources. 

4.  Fresh  water  and  splendid  inland  harbor. 

5.  Materials  for  construction  and  maintenance 
mostly  in  the  country. 

6.  Accessible   to    sailing   ships   with   slight 
delay. 

7.  Free  from   financial    claims    against   the 
parties  constructing  it. 

8.  Route  through  a  country  with  58  inches 
average  annual  rainfall  and,  by  reason  of  the  lake 
receiving  the  drainage,  not  liable  to  floods. 

9.  Lift  locks  remotely  liable  to  damage  by 
earthquakes. 

10.  Two  days  to  pass  through. 

11.  Saving  about  800  miles  between  East  and 
West  Coast  United  States  Ports,  and  losing  about 
180   miles  to   and  from   South  American  West 
Coast  Ports,  for  steamers.     Loss  to  sailing  ships 
in  latter  case,  little  or  none. 


.••    .    .     .  •••.•.  ;•.  i.^i  l  .% 

COMPARISON  OF  ROUTES.  33 

PANAMA. 


1.  Short  Low  Tide  Level  cut,  with  tidal  lock 
at  Pacific  terminus. 

2.  About  double  cost  of  Nicaragua  compara- 
tively. 

3.  Passes  through  a  country  of  comparative- 
ly no  resources. 

4.  Salt   water  and   no  harbors  except  at  the 
termini. 

5.  Materials  for  construction  and  maintenance 
mostly  to  be  imported. 

6.  Inaccessible  to  sailing  ships  without  great 
delay  by  reason  of  calms. 

7.  Required  to  pay  Lieut.  Wyse  10,000,000 
francs  for  concession  and  Panama  R.  R.  Co.,  100,- 
000,000  francs  for  value  of  railroad. 

8.  Route  through  a  country  with  124  inches 
average  annual  rainfall,  and  liable  to  very  high 
floods,  endangering  the  Canal  works  thereby. 

9.  Chagres  dam  remotely  liable  to  damage  by 
earthquakes,  and  to  destruction  by  floods  in  rainy 
season. 

10.  One  day  to  pass  through. 

11.  Losing  about  800  miles  between  East  and 
West    Coast  United    States    Ports,    and    saving 
about   180  miles  to  steamers  to  and  from  South 
American   West   Coast    Ports.     Gain  to   sailing 
ships  in  latter  case  little  or  none. 


